Corpses 01

In my last couple of ATZ scenarios I have added a new element to my game boards - corpses. I don't know why I hadn't thought of this earlier as it seems like such an obvious idea. I mean think about it - in a zombie apocalypse, the longer it goes on, the more bodies will end up dead... and I do mean dead, as in permanently dead. If your player characters kill a zombie, will they dispose of the body in a proper manner, or will they just leave it where it fell? Unless they are defending their HQ I suspect the latter. A few followers have asked me about my figures of corpses, so I have decided to show them in this post and the next. This post shows nine 28mm scale corpse figures that I have bought, whilst the second will consist of figures that I have converted.

At the far left of the top row are two 28mm scale corpses from Ramshackle Games. These are resin-cast figures and come in a pack of three for the ridiculously cheap price of £0.75. The third figure, which I haven't shown, is standing upright as he leans against a wall. He might be dead, he might be wounded, he might be drunk or he might just be tired. I haven't painted him as I'm still deciding what to do with him. If you want to see him, plus alternative paint schemes for the two corpses, check out Lord Siwoc's blog, Brains and Guts here at http://lordsiwoc.blogspot.com/2011/05/world-has-come-undone.html To be honest, I think all three of these corpses are rather crudely sculpted but there's no denying, they are good value for money.
Next in line are a pair of corpses from Chiltern Miniatures 28mm scale Modern Forces Insurgents range. These are part of the African rebels range but when I checked on their price and availability earlier I couldn't find them on the Chiltern website. There are no obvious wounds on this pair, so maybe they're just Out Of the Fight. But then again, not every corpse has to lie in a pool of blood. These are rather chunky figures and in no way should be described as 28mm scale. Like the Ramshackle corpses they come on integral bases, which for me, I'd rather they didn't. It's just a personal preference but seeing as I'm using my corpse figures purely for set dressing, then I'd rather they weren't sculpted with an integral base.
Moving to the bottom row are two corpses made by Citadel. That's right, Citadel! Many, many years ago, Citadel produced a range of 25mm scale 1920's style gangsters. That is back in the days when their figures came with integral bases and scale-creep hadn't been heard of. For those with long memories, I'm talking about the early 1980's. These two beautiful sculpts, one male and one female,  were part of that range and whilst they may appear a bit small when compared with many figures from today, I still think they are usable. After all, not everyone in real life is six feet tall. So just regard these as vertically challenged adults.
In the centre of this row is a corpse made by Cold War Miniatures from their Dead Will Walk range of 28mm scale figures. He is extremely well sculpted and will fit in with many other 28mm scale figure ranges. He is available as a single figure for £1.75 as figure Z32 or as part of set DWW7 Victims for the price of £7.00, which contains four other figures. He is probably the best commercially available 28mm scale corpse around at present.
Next up is a decapitated zombie from Fortress Figures. They rather amusingly called him Matt. He is huge, close to 35mm in size. The sculpting of this range was rather cartoon like, which may be another reason people didn't take to this range. Poor sales might explain why the company are no longer trading. If you want him, you may struggle to find him, unless someone is offering him on eBay. I like the concept of this figure but he is huge and not a great sculpt.
Finally, I present a Horrorclix figure who isn't horrendously overscale, which is unusual for Horrorclix. She was part of a mini-diorama that made up the Ripper figure from the original set. The Ripper figure was one of the silver-edged Unique figures, which will make him rather expensive, I'd imagine, if you find him on eBay. I was lucky, I got a swap of him, so I could use one to play Horrorclix with and the other to cut apart to make two separate figures. Her dress suggests she was a prostitute, which is further reinforced by the fact the she was a victim of the Ripper. I think she's an exquisite figure.

So, of the nine figures I've shown, at present only three are readily available to buy. I find that very sad. There is a niche waiting to be filled for contemporary corpses. I'd guess that there are more available amongst military ranges, which is something I haven't looked into much. I'll add that to my "to do" list. I suspect there isn't much call for contemporary corpses but I'd like to see a lot more. Of course, the alternative is to make or convert your own. That's a topic that I'll cover in my next post.